The 60-Second Aquinas
Lesson
The Eternal Nature of the Holy Trinity
Aquinas Lesson for August 7, 1998
It has previously been determined that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are connected in an infinite and eternal way.
The Son is the Word, intellectual understanding, of the Father. The Holy Spirit is the love of the father.
Now, it is tempting to think of Son and Spirit coming after the Father. Their existence is predicated upon the existence of the Father, but they are not products of the Father in the same way as a human child is the product of his or her father.
A human father exists prior to his offspring. He performs an act that results in a tangible product. Yet, humans are not infinite and eternal, and this is where the difference lies.
Not only is God’s existence infinite and eternal, but so are His Word and Love. In this way, Father, Son and Holy Spirit are all eternal. The Son and Holy Spirit are not products, which implies that they were at some point non-existent. They are always existing.
Explanation of The 60-Second Aquinas Lesson
